


Don't be sorry

by RockinHeaven



Category: Doctor Strange (2016), Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers Infinity War
Genre: Character Death, Emotional Hurt, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-26
Updated: 2018-04-27
Packaged: 2019-04-28 02:00:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14439060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RockinHeaven/pseuds/RockinHeaven
Summary: **CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR AVENGERS INFINITY WAR**It had happened so fast, one moment Tony felt Peter's arms around him, the next he was gone.A brief recollection of some of the characters deaths in Avengers Infinity War.





	1. Chapter 1

 

He could still hear it. That faint echo of his voice, still young although it had matured quite a bit in the last two years. And despite the matureness, Tony had been able to hear it. The fear. The Uncertainty. Peter had been scared, had said it himself in his last moments. His grip around him had been tight, as if gripping Tony would make it go away, would stop it. The fear had gripped Peter, taken him in an even tighter hold. And he had come to him. Because if there was one thing in the whole world Peter knew, it was that he could rely on Tony to make it better. For Tony to be his safe haven. But he had failed him.

Tony didn’t feel the pain in his side, couldn’t taste the blood on his tongue telling him that something major was wrong. Peter was gone.

And that was a pain Tony hadn’t imagined he would ever be able to feel. It had all been to fast. He wasn’t prepared for it. It was all his fault. If Peter had only stayed on earth. . . if he hadn’t been so stubborn to stay on, to fight. If he hadn’t done the same stupid thing Tony would have done in his position.

A chuckle made its way through his mouth, sounding wet with blood, strangled.

The planet around him was completely destroyed, fires raging everywhere. Doctor Strange was gone, the man he had just met, who could have taught him so much. The man, he also needed to have a word with. For not answering his calls about Rhodey two years ago when he had fallen out with Steve. What about them? Rhodey, Steve, the others? Where they safe down on earth or gone? Gone just like Doctor Strange, Quill, the alien Mantis, and Peter?

It was all his fault. He should have fought harder, should have made sure the doctor was safely put away with the Infinity Stone somewhere. The same went for Vision. If only he had never done what he had done all these years ago. New York wouldn’t have been destroyed, he wouldn’t have fallen out with Steve. But then again, he would have never met Bruce, or Clint, or any of the others he considered his friends. There were so many things that would have been different now, if Loki hadn’t come down to earth. It was all a chain of unfortunate events, unfolding in front of his very eyes, unstoppable. Of course, he could ponder about every single scenario, every little thing that could change a whole life.

Doctor Strange had done it. Seen all the possible outcomes. The man must have known his fate, known what was about to come. Tony wanted to trust the stranger, wanted to trust that the wizard’s decision had been the right one, that they could save earth, the universe. But who was “they”? Who was left now?

Tony looked to his side, the earth brown from what was left of Peter. Could he leave him like that? Could he leave Peter, _Peter_ , just like this on this alien planet? The teenager had been scared; scared of being alone, scared of dying. And in the end, he had been the one apologizing.

_I’m sorry, Mr Stark._

No, kiddo. I’m sorry.

It was Tony’s responsibility to care for Peter, his responsibility that he came back home safely to his aunt. That he graduated from school. That he went to college. That he _lived_. He should have just kept an eye on him. Shouldn’t have given him the suit. Shouldn’t have named him an Avenger just hours ago. The way Peter’s face had lit up on finally being an Avenger though. . . that sweet boyish smile. Peter was innocent in all of this. He hadn’t deserved to die, to just dissolve into thin air.

There had to be a way.

Some way that he could make this work. How high were his chances that some of the Avengers had survived? If he had a spaceship, Tony would be able to rejoin them on earth. They could plot, plan. They needed to get this right.

Doctor Strange had seen it. One way where they came out as the ones winning.

But winning didn’t mean that Peter would be back.

Winning could also mean losing someone else. What about Pepper? Was she alright? It felt like an eternity ago that he had told her that he wanted kids. Tony had woken up, knowing that he was ready for kids. He was doing a great job with Peter after all. Had been doing a great job. . .

Tony grabbed the earth next to him, the brown particles in his palm. No, not particles. Peter.

He would make this right. He had to.

Peter had been sorry, but this time it was Tony who actually needed to say that he was sorry. Looking around he saw the blue alien woman, her head cocked to the side, contemplating. He didn’t even know her name, didn’t know if he could trust her, but she might be the only one who could get him off this planet. To get him to whoever was left of the Avengers, to find the one way Doctor Strange had foreseen were they would win. Tony knew that he had to make this right, that he had to do justice. For Peter, and all the others. And after he had gotten his justice, he would find a way to bring them back. So that for once he could tell Peter how sorry he was.

“You don’t happen to have a ship, do you?”


	2. Peter

It started off as a weird tingling in the tips of his fingers. Something similar had happened before, whenever he was in danger, his spider senses just going haywire. But this, this was different. People around him were disintegrating. Moments ago, they had been fighting, losing maybe, but still fighting. And now. . . now they just turned into brown dust. The doctor was gone, turned into a brown cloud that settled on the earth of this planet. Star-Lord was gone, the big alien guy who Peter hadn’t even known the name off, same for the alien girl that looked like an insect.

The tingling got stronger, making its way up his arms now.

“I don’t feel so good”, he got out and stumbled a step forward. Mr Stark looked at him, blood at the corner of his mouth, one hand pressed to his stomach wound. Peter saw it then, that look of devastation that flitted across Mr Stark’s face. That weird tingling feeling was him disintegrating. He took another stumbling step forward. This couldn’t be it. This couldn’t be it. He was only seventeen. This was not how it was supposed to end. He hadn’t even graduated high-school yet. He couldn’t leave Aunt May. Or Ned, or MJ. He couldn’t die yet.

It felt as if the air was sucked out of his lungs; a sob escaped his throat.

“I’m scared.”

Peter stumbled forward once more, his arms coming around Mr Stark. The older man tried to hide the look on his face, tried to wipe the devastation off it, but it was clear for him to see. It was in that moment that Peter realized that this was really it, this was the end of his life. There would be no more school, no more hanging out with his friends, no more being Spider-Man. Just when he had made it into the Avengers team. It was too early! He needed to stay! He needed to help beat that Thanos guy!

But most of all, he couldn’t leave Tony with that look on his face, the utter devastation, the hopelessness. It was his fault. Why couldn’t he just have done what Mr Stark had wanted him to do? Go back to earth. Let the real superheroes fight. Not some seventeen-year-old teenager from Queens. If this was really it, then Mr Stark would blame himself for the rest of his life. However long that would be seeing as the bad guy had gotten the Infinity Stone from the doctor. But still. . . he couldn’t leave like this.

He remembered that day when the crazy car had been parked out on the street, and there he had been, sitting on his living room couch in the old flat as if he _belonged_ in Peter’s life. He remembered the look from Mr Stark, the wiggling eyebrows to get him alone for a bit, to talk to him about being Spider-Man. To this day Peter didn’t know how the man had found out that he was Spider-Man. But then again, the man was Tony Stark, a genius. A genius that was clutching him tightly, as if that could keep him grounded here for longer, as if that could keep him from. . .from dissolving into thin air.

Peter sobbed breathlessly, he couldn’t feel his arms anymore, couldn’t feel his legs. This was it. If only he had stayed on earth, maybe things would be different now, not as bad. It looked hopeless, what were they supposed to do? No. Not they. _Him_. Mr Stark was alone now. Who knew who was left of the Avengers down on earth? What if earth had already been blown to smithereens?

Peter was letting him down once more, for the very last time. There were so many things he had wanted to tell the man. Thank you for the suit. Thank you for making me part of the Avengers, however briefly that had been. Thank you for trusting me.

Of all the things he could have said, he chose the one that came the easiest to him.

“I’m sorry Mr Stark.”

He stumbled, falling to the earth. His legs must be gone. Yeah, he was pretty sure, he couldn’t feel them anymore. Mr Stark was leaning over him, looking at him. That _damn_ crushed look on his face. He tried to smile, to make the older man feel better, but he couldn’t feel anything anymore. He was dying, and he didn’t like it at all.

Peter couldn’t feel it when his body disintegrated, couldn’t see Mr Stark’s face. From one moment he was there, and then he was just gone. A cloud of brown dust settling on the empty planet.


End file.
